VP Biden Helps Serve Food to Homeless in Washington – “Sometimes you forget that this is real”

November 14, 2009

By ABCNEWS.COM

ABC News’ Karen Travers reports:

Vice President Biden made a surprise visit to a homeless shelter in Washington DC on Friday to help serve lunch to dozens of homeless men.

Biden dropped by the Father McKenna Center, a homeless shelter a few blocks away from the U.S. Capitol building that serves around 100 men during the day. It also offers counseling for substance abuse and an HIV/AIDS initiative.

Dressed casually in a black baseball cap, sweater and khakis, Biden put on rubber gloves and an apron to help distribute fish sticks.

Biden said he was there because “"you've got to remind yourself that but for the grace of God there goes I.”

“Sometimes you forget that this is real,” he said.

The vice president said he does this back home in Wilmington and wanted to make the impromptu stop without raising a lot of attention.

"I wanted to do this. I asked where I could do this without a lot of fanfare and they told me I could do it here,” he said.

A Biden spokeswoman said the vice president and his family keep an active service schedule during the holiday season, stuffing stockings for soldiers and serving the homeless.